Edward and Naruto's New Mission
by Buri-kun
Summary: FMA HP Naruto xover. Edward has been ordered to go undercover at Hogwarts as a student and protect a boy named Harry Potter. Little does he know that Naruto has been given the same task. RoyEd, NaruHina, onesided SasuNaru, WinEd.
1. Chapter 1

Naruto and Hinata stared at each other. Both of them were outside Tsunade's office, one hand raised to knock on the heavy wooden door and with thick manila envelopes in the other hand.

Naruto scrutinized Hinata with puzzlement. "What're ya doin' here, Hinata?"

"Hokage-sama gave me an assignment…And wanted me to go for more details."

"Oh, me too. It's so weird- it didn't tell me anything about the purpose- only had the standard paperwork to fill out. Bleh."

"I-I had the same thing as well, Naruto- kun."

The door opened as they spoke. Shizune peeked out, saw them, and opened the door wider to let them into Tsunade's office. "Hurry up, Tsunade- sama doesn't have all day."

It seemed that the two weren't without misgivings, as they hesitated for a fraction of a second before stepping into the simple room. It had already occurred to them that it was extremely rare for a shinobi team to be spit up for missions, and even rarer for it to occur to people of their experience level.

Naruto burst out, "Grandma Tsunade, what'd'ya want us t'do?"

Hinata whispered, "I would like to know as well, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade was sitting in her armchair with her feet propped up on the table and a sake bottle in one hand. She raised a finger, shushing the requests of the team, and then waved dismissively.

"Hold it. This whole entire briefing will take a while, so sit down. Your environment this time will be completely different."

Naruto and Hinata sat down gingerly on the pillows piled on the floor for some unknown reason.

There was a pause before Naruto said, "Come'on, Old Lady. We're listenin'."

"Naruto- kun, if you cannot withhold your enthusiasm, I will arrange for a different person to take over your assignment.

At that, Naruto became still.

The Hokage shifted slightly, settled, and began to speak.

"We had a rather _specialized_ request from one of our allies and we needed to get shinobi approximately your age. You were not my first choice, Naruto, but my preferred people are currently off on missions…" She trailed off delicately, and Naruto's lip curled slightly as he glanced at Hinata.

Hinata twitched and bowed her head. Something about the color of her forehead made Naruto think she was flushed in embarrassment.

"Doubtless," Tsunade resumed, "You have heard the rumors of our gaining access to other dimensional spaces and using the highly variable circumstances for training and such." She glanced at the pair, looking for confirmation or denial."

"But aren't those just rumors?" Naruto butted in.

Tsunade gave him a withering look and continued.

"These portals have been fully-functional outside the experimental stage for approximately a year. We've been able to establish contact with a very different sort of world, and our two governments now are giving each other jobs that cannot be done by people of the government's native plane. One of these such jobs we have assigned to you- as a team you will attend a school of what they call wizardry in that plane, and we expect you to learn there and bring back your knowledge to us. However, that is not your primary objective. You must act as _inconspicuous _guards to one of their important figures, who will be in your grade. His name is Harry Potter.

Hinata piped up. "But Hokage-sama, that still doesn't explain why the teams have been split up."

"Your group will be too large if you brought everyone. Two other people will be joining you from a third plane- a man by the name of Roy Mustang in place of your sensei, and another person in your age group by the name of Edward Elric. In that way, you will have a full group. Also, Mustang and Elric are in command of a different brand of training that is unfamiliar to us and to the people you will probably fight against- it is called Alchemy. Their brand of learning, however, is similar enough to Potter's learning, so Mustang will be a teacher at the school. I expect you to bring back knowledge of both alchemy and wizardry, so I will make your punishment clear to you now in case of failure- I will not allow you to return until you have mastery- and that may take an indefinite period of time. I AM willing to wait. Understood?"

Hinata gave an involuntary shiver again as both the young shinobi replied, "Understood."

Tsunade relaxed for a fraction of a moment, giving them a slight smile.

"Very good. Now, as for background information, I daresay you'll get all you need from here. She handed them two sets of identical books, with seven books in each. They were enormous and extremely bulky, but something about the volumes made them look inviting rather than imposing.

"A Muggle writer- meaning a non-magic user- gathered up data of the magic-user's histories and such. The information is in the form of stories, but is true and reliable nonetheless. I need you two to read these within a week, and on the eighth day you will be leaving. At the same time in eight day, come here prepared to leave."

With that she waved the heavily-laden pair out of her office.

Once out of the government building, Naruto groaned. "How'm I supposed to read this in a week?! These things are HUGE! I'll never finish in time." However, he still wended his way through the crowded streets, Hinata in tow, to the Konoha library.

After reading the first thirty pages or so in a bean-bag-filled corner, Naruto fell silent and became absorbed. Hinata's eyes were a blur- she was reading so quickly that she finished the first book in three hours. Because Tsunade had given them passes, they were able to stay the night in the library, reading throughout. The only breaks they took were to shower and brush their teeth- they read while eating and drinking, determined to finish as quickly as possible. Finally, Hinata finished all the volumes in three days, and Naruto in four.

The remaining time they spent packing for their trip- they didn't need food or drink, or books, so they only packed their clothes and jutsu scrolls, as bringing weaponry was forbidden. Naturally, they still packed some small weaponry in the linings of their backpacks, not feeling confident only with the fighting techniques they learned.

On the eighth day, they returned to Tsunade's office, bags packed and waiting for instructions.

"Have you read all the information I gave you?"

Both of them replied in the affirmative, too preoccupied to say more than a simple 'yes.' Even though they were battle-hardened and not unused to surprise, they still were apprehensive about dealing with completely different fighting techniques and people they've never met. After all, much of their training was physical combat. The things they learned of illusionary techniques simply seemed inadequate, but they knew they had an advantage in that the enemy didn't know how their moves worked, and therefore couldn't combat them.

"You'd better go," said Tsunade, authoritatively snapping them out of their worried reveries. "I have another council meeting in ten minutes." She looked harried, and pursed her lips. "Hold out your wrists." As they did so, she briefly explained how the mechanisms in the portal worked while snapping on a thin, unadorned metal band onto their wrists. "I'll be the one controlling where you go, so you don't need to worry about that. The only thing you'll be controlling is _when_ you go between planes. The red Konoha symbol, when pressed, will send you back to me, and the complicated-looking insignia to the borders of the school. However- if I see you pass through too many times, I'll decide that you're too much of a bother to deal with, so use the transfer process only in emergencies."

The two subdued teenagers nodded quietly, unsure of what transfer would be like. The enormity of what they were told to do struck them finally. Tsunade untangled an identical bracelet from the sleeves of her robes, and pressed a couple of the many inlaid decorations down.

The room seemed to blur at the edges to Naruto and Hinata, and then slowly faded from view. The last thing they saw in Tsunade's office was Tsunade herself, looking distinctly worried as she told them, attempting a tone of bravado, "Good luck. If you don't come back, I'll get one of the alchemists to haunt you with ghosts of the worst type. Ya got that?"She gave them a thumbs-up.

They smiled wanly in return and gave her a thumbs-up as well.

They materialized out of nowhere in the middle of a bustling train-station, and nobody seemed to notice except a 30-ish old man, a tawny-haired boy with a ponytail, and a skinny kid with a mop of unruly black hair, glasses, and a small scar on his temple, all standing together and waiting. Oddly enough, they looked just like the photographs enclosed in the manila envelopes Hinata and Naruto were clutching.

The pair, completely out of their element, felt relieved when they saw the ponytailed boy pull at the older man's sleeve, point at them and wend his way through the crowds toward them.


	2. Chapter 2

This wasn't the reason Edward Elric became a State Alchemist.

He had become one in order to find clues to get Al's body back. That was the sole reason he had become one- not to go on mission to prove himself. Nope, just to use the research resources.

So why the hell was he going on a year-long trip- WITHOUT AL?!

It's not that Edward hated going on missions- they could help in with information on getting their bodies many times- but this one seemed completely pointless. Not only was it talking an entire year in which he could do something during but he was protecting at a _magic school_! Really, what the hell? Magic isn't possible- there isn't any equivalent exchange for that! That ninja stuff doesn't sound much better, either…

As Edward saw the ninjas- Naruto and Hinata, if he remembered correctly- he realized what a pain this mission was going to be. The guy he was guarding hadn't said much yet, both (apparently he had spent the whole summer with his aunt and uncle because of us coming to protect him, and he hated them). The ninjas didn't strong, either…not to mention the blondie's enthusiasm showed him that wasn't exactly excited, either. The girl was acting very shy and didn't seem to be social enough for any kind of people-interaction missions…which was mostly everything. Oh, joy. Well, he knew he probably shouldn't judge either one on the spot, but he couldn't help it.

Despite the year-long pointless mission, so called magic and ninjas, and dealing with people like the ninjas and annoying school kids he was sure to meet at Hogwarts or whatever, that wasn't the reason that Edward was so extremely pissed off, putting the fact that Alphonse wasn't there aside. It was one person- Roy Mustang. Roy was going to be a teacher at Hogwarts teaching alchemy…and Edward had to take the class and basically team-teach it with Mustang. How was Edward going to handle that? Not only did Edward hate kids (okay, so they were all his age…but still), but he couldn't stand that bastard who always called him short and flirted with all those stupid idiotic girls. Okay, so he shouldn't care about the last part, but he did, and that just made him hate the Colonel even more.

It was about a week ago that Edward had found out about the mission. He was there to report on some other missions; Al was there, too, along with Winry Rockbell (their childhood friend) who had wanted to give some automail tune-ups but couldn't until they had someplace to stay. Ed could tell that Alphonse was pretty happy about Winry being with them- Edward wasn't sure about his feelings towards her being there, though. Sure, Winry was his good friend, but she had a crush on him (not that she even knew that herself) and he didn't have those feelings towards her, so it's been kind of awkward for Edward around Winry even since she figured that out.

Edward had walked into the Colonel's office the day after arriving. He was already pissed because he knew Mustang would make a bunch of short jokes- like hell he was short!

"Hello, Fullmetal. I've heard many…things about you from your missions." There was his trademark smirk; Edward glared at him.

"Shut it, Colonel! You're the one who sent me on those missions!"

"But I didn't ask you to unseat their prophet, did I? I only gave it to you because it was a lead- you didn't need to mess up their government."

"He was planning on making his own army; the people were being controlled by his fake stone." Edward glared at the ground; he couldn't believe it was fake after all that…

Roy sighed. "Still no leads then, huh? Well, I'm sure taking a year off isn't going to make much of a difference."

That got Edward's attention. "Huh? What the hell do you mean, Colonel? I'm not taking a year off!"

Roy sighed again- he had expected a reaction like this, even without even knowing what the mission was about yet. "Now, is that any was to speak to a superior officer?" Roy smirked and Edward glared. Roy continued, "You've got a new mission, and it's a long one. You've heard of other worlds, right?"

"Of course," Edward rolled his eyes, "But I know they don't actually exist."

Roy let out a small chuckle and Edward gave him a questioning look. "On the contrary, Fullmetal, they do. One of them we're currently allied with and an assignment for us."

Edward jumped out of his seat; he couldn't believe! "WHAT?! Since when were there other worlds? If do, do they have clues on the stone? And what do you mean, 'we're'?"

"We're, as in you and I. As for the stone, I have no idea. Now-"

"There's no way in hell I'm going on a mission with _you_," Edward interrupted.

Even though Roy did enjoy teasing Edward, he did have work to get done. He shuffled a few papers before speaking, "Fullmetal, you're a state alchemist, and that means you have to listen to orders." Edward stiffened at his comment as Roy continued, "I'm not in the mood for your annoyance anymore. We'll be going to another world where you will be attending a magic school as a foreign exchange student for your cover up."

Edward's blinked in surprise- did Roy just say what he though he said? "Did you just say magic? Because there's no such thing as magic."

Roy knew that was coming too, but he didn't listen this time. "I'll be posing as a teacher- an alchemy teacher, to be presides- and you will assist me during that class. Our actual mission is to protect a boy named Harry Potter from a newly revived powerful wizard named Voldemort. However, you won't be alone- another world is sending two young ninjas…I believe their names are Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuuga."

"Wait a sec, you're not implying that magic's real…are you?"

"Yes, I am, Fullmetal…and for your information, it is." Edward was up again and glaring fiercely and Roy.

"Like hell it is! What's the equivalent exchange in that?"

"Fullmetal, it is, now-"

"So what you're saying is that you, I, and two ninjas- whatever that's supposed to mean- are going to protect some magic kid named Harry Potter against a really powerful wizard named Voldasomething?" Roy rolled his eyes- Edward just wasn't listening.

"Basically, yes, and I'm going to tell you right now that both magic and ninjas are real. Just because our world is ruled by equivalent exchange doesn't mean others are."

Edward, who was now in front of Roy's desk, slammed his hands on the desk; Roy didn't flinch.

"What the hell do you mean? Nothing exists unless something of equal exchange is give up! That's the basic rule of alchemy, no, life itself! Are you trying to tell me that there's no equivalent exchange in all these things, because if there isn't, it doesn't exist!"

Roy closed his eyes in frustration. For himself it was even hard to believe, but for his young subordinate, whose brother and him had to give up everything in an "equivalent exchange", it was impossible to swallow. Roy felt bad for him, but it was better to tell him now then to have him figure it out later on.

"Fullmetal," The anger teenager turned to Roy, "I'm sorry, but it's the truth. There really is no equivalent exchange in magic, and most likely the arts the ninjas practice as well."

Edward was glaring at the ground, expecting to just say something like, "April Fools!" and tell him it was a joke. But they didn't, and the truth started to sink in; he turned to Roy. "It's just…impossible to believe. I don't think I _can_ believe it. I wonder what Al will think…"

Roy sighed- here came the part would kill Edward the most. "Fullmetal, Al's not coming."

Edward's eyes widening and he once again stood up in angry shock. He glared fiercely at Roy.

"And what, you expect me to leave him here for year? Like hell he's not coming!

"Fullmetal, how do you expect him to fit in a magic school? Do you really want people to find out about your human transformation?"

"If Al's not coming, then I'm not coming!"

"You don't have a choice- you're a state alchemist."

"Fuck you! I'm not going!" The door creaked open, interrupting Ed and Roy's screaming match.

"Uh…am I interrupting something?" Edward looked about strangle Roy, but Roy was still pretty calm. Ed sighed and turned to his brother.

"No Al, we're fine."

"Okay…well, Winry's got to go back to Risembool. We should say goodbye to her before she leaves…" Edward once more sent Roy before walked towards Alphonse. Roy wanted to make Edward happy, but he had a job to do, too.

"Fullmetal, you're not leaving until you accept this mission." Edward glared.

"Watch me!" He started towards the door, but Al blocked it; Edward gasped.

"A-Al!"

Niisan, it's just a mission…don't be so mean, okay?" Edward glared.

"Traitor." He turned towards Roy. With no other choice, he looked down at the ground. His hair covered his face as he walked towards the Colonel's desk.

"Give me the damn folder." Roy nodded and handed it over.

"You have five days to read it, Fullmetal…and I'm sorry."

"I…know."

Edward, followed by a slightly confused Alphonse, left Roy's office. Roy noticed that Edward's right hand was clenched in a fist.

The ninjas weren't exactly as Edward had expected them to be.

"**Hey, I'm Uzumaki Naruto!"** What was he saying? Edward couldn't understand him at all- didn't they realize Ed and the others didn't speak their language? On another note, he looked pretty excited, so maybe he was more enthusiastic then Edward had first thought.

Dumbledore- the guy that ha d picked Roy and Edward up- held out something to Naruto and Hinata. Both of them looked confused, although only Naruto addressed it.

"**Huh? What's that?"** Edward still didn't understand the ninjas' language. Dumbledore, who seemed to understand, demonstrated by putting one in his ear.

"They're translating devices- they make what you're saying sound English to others and make what English-speaking people are saying sound Japanese to you." Naruto gasped and Edward rolled his eyes- that was Ed's guess all along to what they were.

"Sugoi! Arigatou!" Edward rolled his eyes again- shouldn't the kid put the devices in _before_ he tries talking? Maybe he was being a little bit hypocritical, but Edward vowed not to be nice until he saw Al again.

"Hey, does this thing work? Do ya guys understand?" Edward wasn't in the mood for the hyperactive kid; he rolled his eyes again.

"Of course we can, idiot." Naruto sent Edward a glare, but he didn't care. Hinata was playing with her fingers nervously while Roy decided to break the silence.

"So you're Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuuga, correct?" Everyone had turned their attention to Roy now; the two of them nodded.

"Yep! I'm Naruto, and that's Hinata!" He answer, pointed to the girl second.

_Jeez, can't she speak for herself?_ Edward thought. Roy sighed and noticed Dumbledore had left.

"Where did Dumbledore go?" Everyone looked to see that he was indeed gone.

"He had to go back to Hogwarts, I bet. We'll get there tonight and I'm sure he'll be there," spoke Harry for the first time. Naruto's eyes were slightly surprised.

"Huh? Is this the guy we're protecting? He's really skinny and looks kinda weak…" Edward couldn't help but agree, but couldn't believe that Naruto was so blunt to say it out loud.

Hinata would never tell Naruto that his comment was rude, but she was sure that if Sakura Haruno was here, Naruto would be smacked- not that he ever deserved it Hinata's eyes, though.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 2- Tenseness

The small group stood in silence for a moment on the train's platform, awkwardly searching for something to say. The moment was broken by a bushy-haired girl breaking through the crowds of people, pulling a tall, gangly, ginger-haired boy by the wrist. The first thing she did was to grab Harry and hug him, and then poured forth questions about his summer and whether he'd been treated all right. Ron stood sullenly to one side, not at all at ease with these new strangers.

Hermione spotted Hinata, Edward, and Naruto, and, as a means of introduction, asked, "Well, Harry, these are your new friends?"

In reply, Harry muttered a rather embarrassed "Er- yeah, of course. Just got here."

At the mention of the word 'friends', Ron bristled and walked up to Naruto, who stood closest to him, and began to rant. "I understand that you're supposed to protect Harry, like he _needs _protecting, but keep in mind that Hogwarts is the safest school in the world. Keep out of his way as much as possible, 'cuz it'll take a lot for us to trust you. Got that?"

Roy, sensing that the situation could get rather ugly, put a hand on Ron's shoulder and spoke. "We understand that this is not your ideal way of doing things. Neither is it our preferred way, as we are in an environment that we have never before encountered, and are not comfortable with. I speak for the whole group when I say that we will endeavor to disturb you as little as possible, for it would be most inconvenient to Harry, and therefore to us, as Harry is our objective for the mission. Please understand this, and if you could, in the future refrain from such outbursts. We have no control over the missions assigned to us."

Ron looked taken aback, but mollified as well. He took the explanation much more easily from an adult than a person of his own age.

After a pause, Hermione briskly took control of the situation when the train's whistle rang. "We'd better get on quickly if we don't want to be left behind. Our luggage will be taken care of in a moment. Come on, let's find seats." Then she turned to Hinata and Edward, clearly bursting with curiosity. "If you don't mind, I'd like you to tell me _everything_ about your brands of magic." At that, Hinata started and murmured agreement, and Edward firmly said, "But of course. If you do not mind, I would like to know about yours as well."

They bustled off to find an empty compartment and found one. When they did, Roy disentangled himself from the group and waved over his shoulder as he walked away. "I'll be back in a moment, need to check in with the other teachers."

The students settled down and waited, as Hermione started asking questions in rapid-fire succession. Edward looked slightly amused as he thought to himself, _perhaps this one I could get along with…perhaps…_

Edward held up a hand to stop the outpour of curiosity. "It would be much more beneficial to us if we heard everyone's stories in full one at a time." Hermione blushed and looked down as he pulled out a sheaf of parchment and a quill from a pocket. "Now, Hinata, could you tell us abou-" He was cut off by the Weasley twins bursting in.

"Hiya, Harry, how 'ya been? Heard 'ya got another one of them Howlers from Mum when 'ya forgot to write…" Harry began to reply happily, when he remembered his new protectors. He pointed at the tense threesome staring stonily at him, or in Hinata's case, folding and unfolding her hands in her lap.

"Oh, Fred, George, these are some of the new students… I'm supposed to help them 'round."

The pair clearly understood what he wasn't saying, having heard the story from Ron earlier in the day. The smiles were wiped off their faces, and they exchanged a few polite, forced pleasantries with the newcomers. They left in a hurry as Roy came back.

"Well, have you introduced each other?" He asked impatiently. The heads nodded slightly and stopped. "Then we'd better get on with learning about our brands of…magic. I was wondering if you were hungry, so I got you these. As your teacher, I must be sure that you are fed and well." He withdrew a huge sack of food from the lunch cart and placed it in the middle of the group.

Hermione spoke up. "Thank you, sir. You didn't really have to do that, though. We usually buy our own." Roy waved her protests away with a smile. Apparently he liked her as well, seeing as her curiosity was reminiscent of Edward's.

"Now then, everyone's got their books and such, correct?" Everyone replied in the affirmative. They found packages of books and supplies waiting for them at the station, probably from Dumbledore.

"If you've got them, then take notes. This is important information, no?"

Hermione pulled out parchment and a pencil from her jacket pocket, as Hinata and Naruto used scrolls and pen. Harry and Ron didn't bother, knowing that Hermione would let them see her notes.

"I believe you are all familiar with the magic of this particular plane?" Roy asked, clearly the leader of the conversation. The same old nods came from everyone. "Good. All of you will be taking intensive remedial classes to catch up with Hermione. She's the best in the school, according to the teachers, and extremely quick. Seeing as I see your wands sticking out of your coat pockets, I trust that you've been practicing spells already?"

The truth was that all of them had only gotten their wands yesterday, and didn't have much time to practice. Naruto didn't even try, while both Hinata and Edward had. Edward had mastered the first three chapters of the first-year book, while Hinata stayed up all night, and gotten through 8 chapters of the total thirty-seven. Roy and Hermione were impressed against their will when it was revealed, and it showed.

"It seems you are familiar. Well, then, we must explain the planes of alchemy and …ninjutsu, was it?"

The majority of the train ride was taken up with long-winded explanations of the theories of the two, with short silences were only the furious scratching of pen and paper were heard, as well as the crinkling sounds of chocolate Frogs being unwrapped and eaten, though only after getting over the initial surprise of hopping chocolate.

Nearing the end of the train ride and the monologues of Hinata and Edward, Roy concluded, "Well, it seems that it is quite possible to gain proficiency in magic in this short period of time, as demonstrated by Hinata. From my own knowledge of alchemy, it is equally feasible to master alchemy. After all, I will be teaching the class and will make _sure_ that everyone learns what I teach." He sent a glare at Naruto, who just barely managed to suppress his yawn. "The only problem is the thing that you, Naruto, Hinata, told us of. Proficiency seems to only be gained from a young age with training of years and years. If there is any sort of system to increase learning, then please tell us of it. The other thing about your particular brand of learning- much of it involves physical destruction, with a smaller portion involving illusions, and techniques that confuse but do not kill. As a teacher, I give you this order: On no account are you to use lethal force on students, or indeed any physical force. Illusions are fine. When it comes to outsiders, the rule applies simply because we want to incapacitate, NOT to kill. Information is important- do not forget."

"On a side note, Harry- we of the other planes know the extent of our strengths and weaknesses, and to a degree those of the others. However, none of us know the aptitudes of you and your friends. Basing our views upon the information that was given to us, we must, for now, assume that you have little skill and need protection. I would like to be given a practical demonstration of your skills as soon as possible- in that way, we can evaluate and change our guard strategies as needed. Are you willing to do so?"

Harry nodded emphatically, thinking. "I have an idea, Professor. When….Oh, wait. If I hex a student who deserves it, you won't take points from Gryffindor? Or give me detention?"

Hermione looked askance at Harry, and a look of comprehension dawned on her face. "Harry! I mean…he is a git, but you shouldn't _do_ that. What if someone rats?"

Ron looked pleased and smirked. "Hermione, he knew he had it coming for a loooong time. Loosen up."

Roy shrugged and replied, "So long as you don't do permanent damage and there are no other teachers or students in the vicinity." Upon hearing this reply, Ron stood up and punched the air in jubilation, and Edward showed the first signs of interest since the lecture ended. _I could learn something from this, _he thought.

Roy settled down more comfortably in his seat, drawing his cloak around him and pretending to doze. Edward laid his head down in Roy's lap and curled up, cat-like, in a ball. Hinata and Naruto sat rigid in their seats, on alert if anything went wrong in Harry's 'test' and they needed to clean up the mess. After a while, the doors slid open as promised and a blond, unpleasant boy looked in, along with some thuggish goons. On seeing the teacher asleep, he boldly marched in and turned up his nose, muttering at Potter.

"Hey, Potter. Heard you needed to gather even more lackeys to protect your sorry ass. How's it feel to have seen the Dark Lord rise from the dead? Liked it? I heard that you even got to see your dead mum…Bet 'cha sniveled like a baby…"

Harry's hands clenched in his pockets, grasping his wand, as he turned slightly paler, remembering Cedric's death. He didn't let it show, instead taking a deep breath and leering at Malfoy. "Yeah, well, Malfoy, at least I don't need my Death-Eater daddy to come and save _my_ ass with his uber-deep pockets whenever I need help. Where were you that night, instead of helping your decaying _Dark Lord?"_

Malfoy's face tightened, and he threatened, "Now, now, cocky Potty, one day you'll wake in your bed, dead…"

Malfoy, his lackeys, Harry, Ron and Hermione all drew their wands at the same time. There was a few confused minutes of hissed spells, silent flashes of light, but the end was the same- Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle looked rather inhuman when they were done with, and as Naruto thought, they bore more than a passing resemblance to Gamabunta the toad, with their orange puffy skin, blue boils and four-foot-long tongues. Roy prodded the unconscious forms with his toe, which promptly got covered in sticky slime from a pus-filled boil. Edward laughed, thinking that the spectacle was ludicrous, and also that his job would be made slightly easier- the friends knew how to protect themselves. After Naruto and Hinata disappeared from the cabin, holding the limp forms, and depositing them in an empty compartment, they came back and Hermione quickly cleaned off their robes. Roy was satisfied with the evaluation, and said so. For a while, until the train stopped, Roy and Edward resumed their positions and slept, while Hinata drooped onto Naruto's shoulder and dozed. Harry, Ron and Hermione quietly discussed their opinions and the train ride passed uneventfully.

As they got off the train, Edward pulled Hermione and Hinata to the side while the others went on ahead. "I'm sorry for holding you up, but I have a question that must be verified," he began anxiously. The girls looked worried, but kept quiet. "You know I spoke of the Law of Equivalent Exchange?" They nodded. "Does that rule apply to your worlds?" They stood contemplating for a moment the answer.

Hinata was the first to speak. "Yes, it does…To learn our arts, you must continually train and exchange time, knowledge, and strength to become stronger. If you need to complete a mission, you have to exchange your strength, and sometimes your life, for the goal. To use jutsus, you must use up your chakra, or life energy, and it only comes back if you nurture it. Yes…Was that the answer you were looking for?"

Edward nodded in satisfaction. "Hermione?"

Hermione stayed quiet for a while longer. When she finally spoke, it was in measured, careful words, as if she wasn't sure of the answer herself. "It…does…but not completely. You learn and exchange your time and knowledge to gain the use of the spell initially…but after that, so long as you can focus your mind…no. That's all I can think of…Did that help?"

Edward slowly chewed over her words, and then walked away, following the now-dwindling crowds. Hermione and Hinata stood still, pondering the question he asked. They didn't seem to find an answer, so they caught up to the people they were supposed to go with and blended in with the crowd.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4- Reception

After entering through the great double doors, the guardian group was thoroughly awestruck by the opulence of the castle. Much of their view was obscured by the crowds of timid first-years clinging to each other as the ghosts attempted to kindly greet the new students with little success. The group was an interesting contrast to the majority of the new students- the stood as close to the front as possible and looked about them with eyes well-practiced in understanding the successes and faults of security, and were duly impressed.

The only thing that made them apprehensive was that their duty was out of their sight, reassured as they were by many that the castle's safety was the best in the magical world.

When the next set of doors were pushed open leading into the Great Hall, the masses of newbies pushed back, leaving a large gap between Naruto, Edward, and Hinata, and the rest. The three walked proudly in and heard snippets of whispers from the older students.

"Would'ja lookit that? I don't remember the Sortees that bold when I was here…"

"Yeah, I know. I was trembling like a leaf…Haha…"

"Definite Gryffindor, by the look o'them…"

Striding up the aisle a good 3 meters in front of the rest, the 'transferees' caught each other's eyes and tried hard to suppress their smiles, thinking of all the false rumors they heard about fighting ogres and such to be accepted.

They stopped at the edge of the dais and peered up expectantly at the Headmaster. He was a more imposing figure than they had imagined, radiating a reassuring sense of kindness and power. Dumbledore's mouth tipped upward and his eyes crinkled at them in a faint smile. Hinata was sure she saw his brows crease in a faint worry line afterward, though.

"Hello. I am sure that you are all quite excited to be here, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." He smiled once more. "The Sorting, please."

A tall, severe woman moved up beside him and began reading names off the list she held. The students called up sat on an old stool and wore the patched, dingy old hat on their heads called the Sorting Het, which called their 'Houses'. They went to sit in their groups and so the process stretched onward. Miraculously, all three of the guardians were put into Gryffindor, probably on the basis of their work in their respective realms. When the last student had settled into their seats and eaten the meal in front of them, the Headmaster commenced his speech.

"Students, old and new, greetings!" Dumbledore boomed. I would like to welcome you all to the school for the beginning of a new year…"

"Also, we must applaud two new teachers- we are offering a new class to fifth years and up, by the name of Alchemical Application, as you probably already know. Let us welcome Professor Roy Mustang, the teacher of this course!"

Roy stood up and bowed slightly to the healthy applause that rang throughout the hall. As Edward glanced around, he saw more than a few girls whispering behind their hands, which for some reason made him jealous. He quickly brought his attention back to Dumbledore and squashed the feeling.

Dumbledore signaled to the students for quiet, and the hall became silent once more. "Also, our Defense Against the Dark Arts position needed filling once again, so let us welcome Professor Dolores Umbridge, who-"

He raised an eyebrow and glanced at the squat woman sitting at the staff table, as if waiting for her to speak.

"Yes, yes, Professor, thank you for the introduction, and, well, now…"

Just about everyone in the hall was dumbstruck. Even Naruto saw why, and took an immediate dislike to the woman, who looked like something that needed to quickly be squashed under a shoe. She interrupted a person who wielded much more power than she, and was rude to boot. He surreptitiously snuck a glance around the hall, instinctively looking for confirmation of his own reaction. He got it, and in overwhelming numbers. Quite a few of the students sat with open jaws or snippy expressions, and the teachers were no different. The tall lady, McGonagall, raised her eyebrows higher than even Tsunade-Baa-san ever did. Hinata looked blandly at the teacher, but Naruto knew her well enough to detect her dislike. Edward wore a disgusted, measuring expression, reminded of the experiments at the abandoned military warehouse for some reason. The flabby-faced woman seemed, in his mind, to have murderous intent similar to 'Barry the Chopper'. Around her was a definite aura of malice, though not easily recognized by people who didn't know what to look for.

She droned on, and Naruto zoned out within moments of hearing what she had to say. Edward and Hinata listened intently, as did Roy, a frown firmly pasted onto his face. He met Edward's glance in a look that clearly said ,there's something wrong with this picture. Edward nodded slightly. Hinata stayed still, forcefully reminded of the records of Konoha history she had to memorize in history class, not all of it pleasant. She thought to herself that the worst intentions were often hidden by the most innocuous visages.

As it came to an end, the majority of the students were taken by surprise, instead opting to start their own conversations or put their heads down on the table and sleep. Naruto did the latter, while Edward and Hinata didn't bother to clap the one or two times that the staff did. Dumbledore did so loudly but quickly stopped, and instead continued with giving out notices to the students.

One of them dealt with the guardians, taking them completely by surprise. "Also, we have an unusual occurrence in our school, and we would like all of you to aid with it. Three of our new Gryffindors are transferees, and it would be most helpful if the student body would help with their studies if necessary. They came from several different lands, so the curriculum may be different. Please stand up, if you will."

Naruto shot up and waved, while Edward gave him a disdainful glance and got up slowly, in a dignified manner. Hinata partially hid behind Naruto, clutching his arm and blushing ferociously, making him glance down and look surprised. Because she was so flustered, she didn't hear some of the boys grin and say a few choice words about her. It made Naruto a bit angry for some unidentifiable reason, and his jaw tightened. All of the students clapped except for the table to their left, where a green and silver banner hung. They glared silently and defiantly, and the two standing boys glared back, while Hinata buried her face into Naruto's school robes.

Dumbledore relieved them of the awkward moment by dismissing the hall to bed. In the ensuing confusion, he quietly descended and spoke to the transferees. "If you would, please, I would like you to meet me in my office in the morning, at seven o'clock. A very unusual candy I'd like to try is "Cockroach Cluster."

He then left them with a "Good Night", and they proceeded to their dormitories, following the straggling Gryffindors into the common room, after catching up to Harry, Ron and Hermione, who were discussing the power-struggle implications of the new teacher. Edward and Hinata joined in, and their fears were quickly verified.

Both regarded this as outside the scope of their mission, but would quickly discover how wrong they were.


	5. Chapter 5

Hinata rolled over in bed, not recognizing where she was for a moment. When all the experiences came flooding back, she leapt out of bed and hurried to get ready for classes. She paused for a moment, shaking Hermione awake urgently. "Hermione-san! Hermione!"

Hermione groggily turned over. "Wha- Oh no! I'm late!"

"Hermione! When Dumbledore said something about candy and his office, what did that mean?" Hinata asked, an urgent tone in her voice.

Offhandedly, Hermione replied, "that's the password to his office, whatever candy it was. C'mon, we don't want to be late for class." Hinata grabbed her books and wand, hurtling off to the boy's dormitory. She wasn't surprised at seeing Edward up and dressed- he seemed like such a person. Naruto, on the other hand, was sleeping sprawled out on the bed with his mouth wide open and hangings tangled.

"Naruto-kun! Naruto-kun! We have a meeting, remember?" Naruto flipped over and continued snoring.

"Just a few more minutes, OK?"

Hinata dithered for a moment, but Edward solved the problem for her. Picking up the sheet crumpled under Naruto, he lifted him up and dumped him on the ground with a muffled crash. Reaching over to the windowsill, he took the pitcher of drinking water, and poured it on Naruto's head. To finish the job, he hoisted him up by the collar and growled, "UP. NOW." By this point Naruto was fully awake and grumbled a bit more as he drew the curtains and started to dress. Hinata couldn't resist…"Naruto-kun? Are you all right?"

"Yeah….yeah."

"We should go, then." A grunt in reply. "Ah! Edward- san?"

Ed turned back and gave a pointed stare at Hinata.

"'Cockroach Cluster' is the password to the headmaster's office."

Ed turned away and said, "Meet 'ya there. Hurry up. We've got to get to class. Don't be late."

There wasn't any need to wait, though. Naruto had already dashed through dressing, brushing his teeth, and grabbing his schoolbag. "Come on! I wanna have a talk with that Dumbledore guy! Reminds me a bit of Baa-sama, neh, Hinata?" He raced off ahead of the others. Just as the edge of Naruto's robes whisked away, Harry came out, calling, "I'll show you where Dumbledore's office is…one minute," as he tugged a comb through his hair in a losing battle.

Hinata blushed and murmured a thank-you, while Ed sat down nonchalantly on the edge of an overstuffed sofa. Harry started walking, and the two remaining guards followed as well. They walked briskly through the halls, now beginning to fill up with students going down to breakfast. At last they reached a stone gargoyle set in a recess. They knew they had reached the right place because Naruto was standing outside, arguing with it.

"Let me _in!_" He yelled, shaking his fist at the carved creature.

"No password, no entry," the creature cheekily replied.

"But I was told to come here!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Too bad, sonny."

Edward seemed to lose some of his patience. "Quiet, both of you. Cockroach cluster."

The gargoyle lost its gleeful expression, clearly unhappy that it had to take orders from a student. It began to rotate, and revealed a narrow staircase. "Get on, then. I haven't got all day!" it snapped. Harry took his leave of them, though Ed was clearly ill at ease with his charge out of his sight. _But really, someone would have to be plain stupid to attempt something in full view of 800 other students and trained teachers…_"

The staircase stopped moving, and Naruto knocked loudly on the door in front of them. Dumbledore called, "Come in."

The group traipsed in the room, while Hinata gave an involuntary gasp and Edward raised an eyebrow, duly impressed by what he saw inside. Behind the desk were many whirring, clicking, and shining tools, some of which Ed had seen preserved as relics in museums back at Central, in one of the museums in the center of the city.

Hinata, on the other hand, was more taken with the bird sitting on a perch next to the desk. Its plumage was red and gold, with brilliant beady black eyes, intelligent and wise. When Edward turned around at her squeal, he was shocked by the vision of the firebird. "A phoenix?" He asked, attempted to keep his composure. "The immortal firebird?" he couldn't help but think of Alphonse, still trapped in that cold metal suit of armor. Perhaps he would research the uses of phoenix feathers or something in the library- the collection was prodigious, and he'd probably find something about restoration of the body there. The bird cooed soothingly, sensing Ed in distress, burdened with the guilt he still carried over his mistakes. Ed took a deep breath and asked, "What matter are we to discuss, sir?"

Dumbledore beckoned them to sit down on the chintzy, squashy chairs he conjured up out of nowhere. "Please, make yourselves comfortable. While this may not take long, I would like your utmost attention here."

Even Naruto's interest was piqued at this pronouncement. They sat down, somewhat awed at the power the old man radiated. The twinkle in his eyes dimmed somewhat as he began to speak.

"Although I understand that your goal is to protect Harry Potter and bring back knowledge of our school to your respective realms, I myself have two other tasks to delegate to you, should you choose to accept them. One of these tasks has already been preset in the scope of your mission, but the other is yours to choose. Whether you accept or not will not reflect upon your status at this school nor upon your status in your native lands. I would, however, very much like you to think deeply on the subject." He steepled his long, thin fingers.

"The first, in the understanding of fostering a good relationship between our lands, is that I would like to learn about your respective practices more in-depth than will be covered in classes. For this, I would like to conduct meetings in this office for your group and Harry, perhaps his friends, if they so choose. The other task is much more complex- I would not advise you to take it up unless you have given it serious thought. Through our correspondences with your lands, I have heard that Alphonse, Edward's brother, has lost his body through an unfortunate miscalculation." At this, Dumbledore looked up at Edward, his gaze clearly showing him that he did not blame him for what happened. "If you would, do what is within your capabilities to do to research a cure for this occurrence. Our library is within your reach, and I am sure that Hermione Granger would be extremely pleased to be given such a task." His eyes twinkled a bit more brightly. "Now, I should not hold you up for much longer or you will miss breakfast. Concentrate on your studies- remember that. Have a good day."

The group took that as a dismissal and rose to leave. Naruto looked bored and hungry, while Hinata looked intrigued. She piped up in Ed's direction, "I will do my best to help, Edward. I've done a few experi-" she broke off, perturbed by his expression.

Edward's jaw was tight and his knuckles were white and clenched. He was fuming, absolutely irate that that information had been revealed. He punched the stone wall with his automailed arm, sending cracks up the sides and scaring away a couple of Hufflepuff first-years. Hinata pulled Naruto towards the breakfast hall and came back to Ed once Naruto had left and she had grabbed a stack of toast. Edward had slipped down the wall and cradled his head in his hands. Hinata settled down next to him on her haunches, waiting until he regained his composure and gave him some buttered toast.

She barely caught what he said, almost in a whisper. "He didn't even _blame_ me…"

Hinata stayed quiet as they both munched through the stack of toast. Unbeknownst to Edward, Tsunade-sama had taken the liberty to inform Hinata about their group member's pasts. Hinata resolved to do all she could for this boy's brother, particularly because she remembered a shocking, guilty incident that had also happened with two brothers…not quite so long ago.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own the Potterverse, Naruverse, or Alcheverse. If I did….rubs hands together ….hehehe……

The group compared schedules after the hurried, rather tense breakfast and found that their first class that day was Alchemy. The Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were together in the same room, and all of the students were rather interested in what the subject would entail…they had not received any books for the subject, or supplies. They felt rather foolish standing outside of classroom nine without their usual load of books, with only parchment and quills.

Mustang came up behind the group congregated outside the room and pushed the door open, motioning them inside. As he was an unknown quantity, everyone was quiet and subdued. It quickly became apparent, though, that he was much different from their other teachers- he barked orders and expected them to be followed with military efficiency.

"Although I understand that no books have been assigned for this subject, I still expect you to study well for the test at the end of the year. For this purpose, I need you to take notes on the information I will give you. Quills and parchment, OUT!"

The students hastily unrolled their papers and uncapped the inkwells. Ron, who was sitting between Naruto and Harry, groaned under his breath. He muttered, "We've never had …good…classes that were all lectures before." Hermione shushed him from the row behind, where she was sitting next to Hinata and Edward.

Mustang paused and continued again. "There are few branches of magic about which so much controversy hangs as alchemy. I will be teaching you the applications of alchemy, and the rules that must be followed within the field, without which, you would doubtless found yourself dead."

Edward shifted uncomfortably in his seat, clutching his arm. Hermione sat up straighter, but Naruto snorted out loud. Mustang raised an eyebrow at him and waspishly asked, "Mr….Uzumaki, is it? Questions are to be fielded with a raised hand."

Naruto raised his hand and asked, slouching back in his chair, "Whad'dya mean, dead? You're still here, aren'cha?" To everyone's surprise, Mustang did not react, except to reply with a more serious tone.

"Yes, but that is because of the rules applied. Within the field, there are areas of taboo that must not be attempted." Naruto seemed rather lost, but Hermione quickly raised her hand.

"Miss Granger?"

"What rules do you mean, sir? And what would the consequences of those rules be if broken?"

Though nobody noticed it,as their eyes were riveted on the Professor, Edward gave a twitch and slipped an inch down the seat. Mustang seemed to have noticed, for he replied that he would tell them within the course of the day.

He began talking, and, to everyone's surprise, the lesson became fascinating quickly. As they hastily scribbled down the lecture, and copied down complex diagrams, he covered the basics of the 'how-to' of Alchemy- transmutation circles, what can be done with it, and so on- and abruptly stopped as the information was done with. He waited for any questions to come up, and they did, all at once. He put up a hand and everyone lapsed into silence. "Write the questions you have on parchment and put them on my desk. We will not have time for all of them, as we will go over the rules as well, but I assure you that they will all be answered in due course."

Everyone put quills to paper except Naruto and Edward- the former was staring off into space and the latter was slumped in his seated with a haunted expression in his eyes. En masse, pieces of paper piled themselves up on the table on which Mustang was leaning. He took off the first piece and read it aloud.

"Are there any restrictions to alchemy usage, in terms of people and why?"

"The use of alchemy was traditionally called 'The Art for the People', and civilians used it freely. There are certain divisions within the army that use alchemy now as a weapon of war, but everyone may use it, within limits. Not everyone does, due to the fact that a great amount of training is necessary, but there are no 'restrictions' on its use among the population. Now, the second- Look at the time…We will continue this next class…The rules, then. Copy this down.

"Although there are few rules, there are some that seem to be insurmountable, except within a few cases. The first- the Law of Equivalent Exchange. You cannot gain something with nothing. You give up something of EQUAL VALUE to gain what you are looking for. For example, you are currently giving up free time to gain knowledge and pass your examinations. Time is exchanged for knowledge. This can only be bypassed in one case- using the Philosopher's Stone."

At this, the class gasped and started muttering. Roy coolly cut in and continued, "That is the first rule. The second- You must never transmute gold. This has never been done successfully, so do not attempt it. The third- Do not transmute human lives. This has been attempted before, with disastrous results. The soul and life of a human cannot be called back from the dead. You would be foolish to try."

Hermione's hand flew up into the air and she began to ask a question. Roy called, "class dismissed!" as the bell rang, and Hermione never finished her question. She sprinted to the teacher and began to ask, and Roy again cut her off, quietly saying, "We will go more in depth upon the topic next class." Hermione looked slightly mollified, but quite unsatisfied. She walked out of the room, intensely curious. Ron and harry followed, with Hinata and Naruto trailing them. Naruto just looked bored, while Hinata chatted excitedly with Hermione about the lesson.

Edward was the only one still in the room. He hadn't moved an inch, lost in thought and apparently unaware that the lesson had ended. His eyes looked slightly glazed, and he only snapped out of his reverie when Roy brought his fist down hard on his desk.

"The lesson is over. You should be getting to class." Roy looked down on him blankly.

Edward stared for a moment, then jumped up and sprinted out of the room, even forgetting to retort in his usual manner to his new Professor.

Hiya, guys! I'm the author, Buri-kun. I have a couple of little blurbles for you, because I noticed that other authors have them too.

I'm really sorry- I'm probably going to have shorter chappies from now on, due to time constraints. But they'll occur more often, though…

And…for the pairings, I think I'm going to rework them a bit…since flamealchemist15 knows the RoyEd pieces, I'm a bit lost as to how to portray that pairing…I'd be very happy for any suggestions. Also, if you'd like any sort of other pairing or chapter content, send a review saying so…I'll definitely consider. (This author knows what she wants for the end of the story, but not the middle…sigh hopeless…..)

This may or may not go on a 1-week hiatus for brainstorming…We'll see.

I hope you enjoyed the chappie! R+R pleezes!

Also, I think I might have an idea- what do you think? (The idea is Hinata x Edward) It's unlikely, but if you like it, then I might have it…

Out and about…buri-kun


	7. Chapter 7

Hello, all readers! I'm sorry to say, but 'Edward and Naruto's New Mission' will be going on hiatus. It'll still be updated periodically, but I cannot, unfortunately, guarantee any sort of consistency, due to the fact that I have gotten myself a job and am now working. I'm sorry about this, but it is unavoidable. I am currently considering doing a different format- using the same characters and pairing in the same settings, but in situational one-shots. If you think that you would like something like that better, please send a message or review my way.

Currently, I've also run out of ideas for the rest of the school-year with all of events, and the only thing I have definitely planned out is the battle at the end- meaning from the capture of the gang in Umbridge's office in book 5 and onward. If you would like me to skip to the climax of the story there, I can do that as well.

I'll be glad to field any ideas from you, as I'm rather perplexed right now. Again, I'm really sorry…


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